The Round Table: A YVote Podcast

The Round Table: A YVote Podcast

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The Round Table: A YVote Podcast episodes

  • The Venn diagram btw deeper learning and progressive education
    We spoke with our podcast guest Jal Mehta about whether there is a distinction between progressive education and deeper learning. Jal explained that deeper learning happens at the intersection of mastery, identity, and creativity. Progressive education at its best brings these three things together, but we’ve all been a part of truly terrible projects characterized by shallow learning--think dioramas… Emphasizing mastery and expertise is key. True mastery requires discipline, practice, and feedback from more knowledgeable others.
    Ideally, progressive education has these attributes but the traditional progressive virtues are more rooted in identity, intrinsic motivation, falling in love with a subject--which may or may not emphasize mastery.
    1 min
  • The power of authentic assessment
    In our conversation with Jal Mehta, we explored how to present a more accurate and holistic picture of the pandemic student in the college application process. Much like an athlete submits recruiting videos or an artist submits a portfolio, we think there’s real power in students submitting an organized and purposeful collection of their best work to complement traditional assessments and grades.
    1 min
  • The difference deeper learning makes
    Our guest Jal Mehta talked about the difference in the depth of understanding that comes when you are DOING something rather than just passively listening or receiving it. In studying a high school theater program, some of the students told him, “When you read a play, you’re the audience; when you put on a play you’re the teacher.” The practice of trying to do something over time helps you understand things in more depth plus you are far more likely to remember it years later.
    1 min
  • What IS deeper learning?
    Our podcast guest Jal Mehta of Harvard Graduate School of Education helped us understand what deeper learning is and entails—and what a contrast it is from the shallow, sanitized learning that happens too often in school.
    1 min
  • Why We Should Have Time To Eat In School

    At this week's Round Table, Eliza, Inica, Isaiah, Madeline, Olivia, and new outreach director Tarika spoke with Jal Mehta from Harvard Graduate School of Education, where his work focuses on the modest topic of what it would take to improve American education. We talked about what deeper learning is--and isn’t, why we shouldn’t blame teachers for failing to foster it, why we need to think much more radically about what and how we teach--in and beyond the pandemic, what authentic assessment that could drive deeper learning could look like, and why extracurriculars like Next Generation Politics are powerful examples of deeper learning.

    In this year when PowerPoints have too often substituted for meaningful learning experiences, and zoning out has become more prevalent than ever thanks to Zoom, this episode is super timely and important. Thank you for joining us!

    28 min
  • Beyond "The Lost Year"

    At this week's Round Table, Inica, Isaiah, Madeline, and Olivia spoke with Lily Howard Scott, an outstanding educator, curriculum developer, and social and emotional learning coach who has been doing research on learning gains during the pandemic. Recognizing that this year has been full of challenges for students, parents, and teachers, Lily focuses on the creative opportunities that have arisen now that teachers literally have a portal (known as Zoom) into students’ worlds and are forced to think about the whole child in a dramatically enhanced way. We discussed how complex it is to create change in teaching and learning at scale--and how powerful it is to have some models for doing so, but how this year has the potential to move us forward--OR backward--by leaps and bonds. We want to know: what learning will YOU hold onto beyond the pandemic? Please leave us a voice memo or pop us an email sharing your experiences. Also, let us know what you think about our new Monday morning posting schedule. Thank you for joining us!

    41 min
  • Why some of the most powerful political movements of recent decades have been on the Right
    Our guest Josh Zeitz reminded us that if you look at some of the most successful political movements over the last 50-60 years, a lot of them have been on the conservative front. This was an outgrowth of a powerful and emboldened political right in response to liberal consensus that arose from the 1930s-60s, that knew very clearly what it didn’t like and what it wanted, and that has spent decades building power to do what they want. The remaking of the federal judiciary is a great example. He underscored that this ability to not just work against something but work FOR something--deeply and dedicatedly for decades--is the challenge at hand for the Left.
    1 min
  • New government programs tend to be very controversial at first
    Our guest, historian Joshua Zeitz, reminded us that many government programs that provide social benefits are very controversial at first--Social Security was initially decried as being very socialistic--yet become untouchable and beloved by the American people.
    He also drew our attention to recent changes in civic participation. Our guest Joshua Zeitz noted that former President Trump, and despite his efforts to roll back democratic norms, excited a genuine interest in American politics and voting among supporters and opponents alike in a way that no president has in many many years, inclusive of less traditional voters from rural areas and who lack college education. The 2020 election ignited record-breaking voter turnout--followed by current efforts to pull back on voting rights.
    1 min
  • The rise and fall of the imperial presidency
    Our podcast guest, historian Joshua Zeitz, referenced the world of Arthur Schlesinger, a renowned historian and leading light of liberalism, who popularized the concept of the imperial presidency. He wrote biographies of FDR and Andrew Jackson, both of whom he viewed favorably in terms of how they used executive power to drive popular democratic reform. However, by the early 1970s in the aftermath of the Vietnam War, he had grown skeptical of an imperial presidency that overshadows the other branches of government. Former president Trump took this to a new level and in doing so, may have demonstrated the limits of an imperial presidency.
    1 min
  • Transformative Presidencies: Never Let A Good National Emergency Go To Waste

    At this week's Round Table, Inica, Madeline, and Olivia spoke with Joshua Zeitz, a historian, contributing editor at Politico Magazine, and New York Times best-selling authority of books including Building the Great Society: Inside Lyndon Johnson's White House and Lincoln Boys. Josh helped us make sense of the current presidential administration, which is going big and going quick in its first 100 days. While the imperial presidency has loomed large for the last several decades, the presidency hasn’t always been what it is, and the last four years have suggested strong parameters in just how far a President can go. We had a fantastic conversation about the abilities and limitations of presidents; the impact of polarization--historically and currently--on civic participation; the influences of FDR, LBJ, and Obama on the Biden administration; and how to strike the right balance of looking back and looking ahead. The Biden administration is betting on people wanting more, not less, government right now, which goes against the winds of recent years.  We’ll see how it goes. 

    Please note: we're experimenting with a new weekly pod publication date, shifting from Thursday to Sunday morning. Let us know what you think.

    Thank you for joining us!

    28 min

About The Round Table: A YVote Podcast

From the publisher's feed

The Round Table provides a platform for conversation and engagement of civically-minded young people from different parts of the country. We strive to model civil dialogue across various divides--socioeconomic, racial, ethnic, political, and regional. We aim to challenge norms and represent all kinds of diversity--especially of perspective and ideas--enabling listeners to “hear” our thinking.